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Hi, I am having a AC attic system installed in my 1100 square foot ranch in a few weeks. Currently there are just the joists with insulation. I am going to add plywood and screw it down to about a 9 foot wide area the lenght of my house.

My question is, would the installers be glad that I plywooded or would they prefer to jump around on the joists? I planned on plywooding up in the attic anyway, but I figure that it will be easier to plywood before the install, right? It it that much more trouble to saw through plywood for the supplys? Thanks in advance.

Thanks for the reply.
I was hoping to use the plywooded sections for some limited storage space as well. Im not going to pack crap around the AC equipment, but I would like to put some smaller items up there for storage. I could always tell the installers to unscrew the plywood (4'x4' sections) for where they want to put the supplys.

Simpleman
Have 1 or 2 sheets of 5/8 plywood cut in half ready to be installed. Let the A/C installers lay it on the rafters and install your system. When there done you can secure the walk way down out of their way. (They may do this for you)
The small amount of insulation loss is nothing compared to the ceiling damage that can happen.
I would not install a system without some type of decking and an attic fan. (This is always billed out as an extra.) Give the Men a comfortable work environment and they perform a better service!
Dont forget to have plenty of Ice Water for the install crew. Pictures of Dead Presidents go a long way also.

I say go ahead and deck it, they'll love you for it. The only kicker will be if they need to add a run to a room under the plywood but they can cut that out. I agree, call the contractor and ask him his thoughts.

While your at it, if you want them to really appreciate and take care of you (meaning do a better job), put adequet(sp?) lighting up there and fill a cooler with ice and bottled water or gatorade for them to keep hydrated while working up there. If there is any way to install an attic fan or even a box fan exausting out the gable end, that would help while they work. Attic work for hours on end is not fun, I dont care who you are. No, its not required, but you will probably fall into the "He's probably the best customer we ever had" catagory. It will be worth it to you, trust me.

I already have a cooler put aside for when they start.I am going to fill it daily with ice and water/gatorade. I also put a small radio for some tunes up there. I had the small hallway opening replaced with a pulldown Werner hideaway stairset.

I installed flouescent lighting (cooler than incandescent) and there is already a gable fan installed. There is power up there as well for their tools. I mounted a small outdoor style thermometer on the rafter (its mostly for my use but they might want to know the temp for taking breaks, who knows)?

I think I will go ahead with the plywood in 4'x4' sections, I will be screwing it down instead of nailing it so they can move sections if need be. The attic is completely empty so they wont be tripping over junk. I think they will be happy.